CAKE Web Services Blog

One of the most frequent challenges we face with clients is what I’ll refer to as “furniture moving”.  All the cosmetic little tweaks that are important, but also take time and resources from SEO and visitor conversion work.  The logo the needs to be 4% bigger, the new photo of the company president that looks almost exactly like the current photo but MUST be replaced before moving forward, or the website design they sweated over 3 years ago and are reluctant to change, even though it’s not ranked well with search engines and doesn’t convert the few visitors that find the site by mistake.

The best looking website in the world won’t achieve your business objectives if it can’t be found and doesn’t effectively “funnel” visitors into taking action with a purchase, a phone call, form submission, or even a Twitter follow.  If the website doesn’t help you move the ball forward, all you’ve done is build a static piece of corporate vanity to place up on a shelf and be admired.  Like the emperor’s new cloths, everyone you ask will tell you how fantastic your new piece of art looks…  Except for paying customers.

Don’t get me wrong… GOOD PRESENTATION AND BRANDING ARE VERY IMPORTANT.  Your website must positively reflect your corporate branding, identity and mission.  However, your online marketing (aka: website) also must achieve your business objectives first!

Ironically, we don’t run into “style” issues very much with companies who have well-established branding and well-defined marketing objectives.  It’s usually the smaller companies, with a driven and passionate leader behind the wheel, that get bogged-down while developing a new website.  The company’s success is mostly because of that one person’s leadership, drive, ambition, knowledge and way of getting things done.  Unfortunately, that also means very strong opinions and an unyielding attachment to doing things a “certain” way.

The customer is always right, unless they’re wrong.

No matter how entrenched the opinions or existing branding may be, the best way to work through style over substance and form over function impasses, is to remember a couple things:

1: First thing’s first… Your website needs to be found by your potential customers.  Content drives Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and is the key to being found by the people who need your products and services. Instead of 6o days of “furniture moving”, spend your valuable time creating content your clients will need to make a purchase decision; content for the new blog, content for your Social Media Marketing (SMM) campaign, etc.  It’s the very same content Google, Yahoo and Bing will need to establish your relevance and rank your site accordingly.

2:  Your website must convert visitors to dollars.  Simply being “pretty” is so 1998!  Does your new website help “guide” your visitors toward a purchase, a contact form, a twitter follow?  Does it let them access the information they require within a couple mouse clicks?  Is the design “clean” enough to let your primary and secondary messages to be seen and heard over the clutter?

3: Make sure your web developer gives your website a framework that allows rapid changes.  It’s easier to have faith that minor issues can and will be changed if those changes won’t require 2 emails and 15 phone calls every time.  In the old days, the website was “static”, almost like a work of art, and had to be absolutely perfect before “unveiling” to the public.  Most “artistic” web designers shy away from Content Management Systems (CMS), but more and more companies are seeing the value of rapid deployment offered by Joomla, Wordpress, Drupal.  With the right software, companies can move away from rigid “must be right the 1st time, because changes take forever” mentality.  Your website should be a dynamic, living document.  You can fiddle with it all you want, AFTER it starts paying the bills!

One parting thought regarding form & function…

If you’re making the decisions regarding your website, please remember that you might not be your own ideal demographic.  Making or selling a great service or product doesn’t always make you the expert on what your customers like and need to see.  Allow outside consults, don’t be afraid to test different ideas.  Those “outsiders” will see things in a new light.  They’ll see things more like your customers will.  At the end of the day, it’ll come down to your decisions.  Just be sure to remember function is equally as important as form, and far more important than vanity.

If you’d like to discuss your website and online marketing, we’d love to talk with you.  Even if you just need a second opinion!  Visit us at CAKEwebservices.com or call 214-356-4700.